Welcome to my little corner of the Internet - the place to read my random ramblings. Feel free to drop a comment or two. :-)

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

back from Riverside again

I just got back from Riverside again with my parents. You may remember that we went there in May to learn more about the statistics department at UC Riverside. The purpose of this trip was to get a closer look at housing options.

Day 1

It was a hectic morning because we didn't pack up. This is normally done the day before, but everyone was tired after a busy 4th. We hurried to the airport to find our flight delayed by almost 90 minutes. I could have used some extra sleep. :\

The flight to Ontario was uneventful. Dad rented a car and took us to several apartments in the area. Although I prefer living in a dorm, the apartments were cheaper and had fewer restrictions. Of note is that some offices were closed for the 4th of July weekend. I guess making this an overnight trip was the right decision.

The afternoon ended with an early dinner at IHOP. The food wasn't bad at all. As odd as it sounds, this was the best part of the trip. There wasn't much else to do, although we saw a beautiful sunset from our room. That alone made our stay worthwhile.

Day 2

The breakfast at the hotel was delicious too. Dad then took us back to the offices that were previously closed. It wasn't long before we found an apartment we liked. Two families that lived here were eager to make friends with us. One even invited us in for a chat. They were really nice people. I was getting hungry at this point but felt it would be rude to ask to be excused.

The three of us then had lunch at Coco's Bakery before going to UC Riverside to thank a professor who helped me get a conditional admission. Dad also wanted to look at furniture as the apartment is unfurnished. Our last stop before heading home was a nearby grocery store.

We arrived at Ontario International Airport to find that our flight home was also delayed, this time by about an hour. Lesson learned: always check flight status before rushing to the airport. On the other hand, I had a great conversation with a girl who was also studying statistics. :-)

Conclusions

Because the purpose of this trip was to learn more about the housing near the UC Riverside campus, our itinerary didn't include any tourist spots. That said, the dinner at IHOP and the sunset were quite memorable. Traveling is always fun regardless of the reason. I've posted some pictures from the trip.

At any rate, I'm extremely excited about moving to Riverside in September. It'll be challenging but probably nothing I can't handle. Bring it on!